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OmnusI
Personal Channel Description "This is the channel containing all things related to the works of OmnusI, Game Master at large, with over 30 years of gaming experience in tabletop role-playing games. Reviews, anecdotes, advice and community-building for gamers are the focus of these videos. Please enjoy!" ~Rob Gustafson Origins of OmnusI OmnusI is created and hosted by Rob Gustafson. Rob was inspired to start his channel while participating in the RPG a DAY Facebook Group during August 2016, where participants post answers to 31 RPG-related questions during the month, one per day. His answers to these questions can be found on his Facebook page if you scroll down to the very bottom (they are NOT on his YouTube channel). He then began his channel in late September that year after preparing several episodes. Lair of OmnusI series The main series on this channel, the Lair of OmnusI, is hosted by the character OmnusI (portrayed by Rob Gustafson, the channel creator and OmnusI's alter ego). OmnusI provides advice, personal anecdotes, and various other content pertaining to tabletop roleplaying games (RPGs). The series follows a level system, with each episode being named Level One, Level Two, Level Three, etc. Each episode focuses on a particular aspect of the RPG hobby, with the series as a whole delving ever deeper into the intricacies of the subject matter. This structure is meant to emulate the idea of descending down into a dungeon (coincidentally one of the many different locations one might find oneself in while playing such a game), floor by floor. Lair of OmnusI Episodes * Level One - The Experience of the Game * Level Two - The Language of the Game * Level Three - Players * Level Four - The Tools of the Game * Level Five - Halloween Horror * Level Six - Conventions * Level Seven - The Big Bad Evil Guy * Level Eight - Play Styles Through Gaming * Level Nine - Gaming Thanksgiving * Level Ten - First Steps to Gamemastery * Level Eleven - Session Zero * Level Twelve - Preparing an RPG Module * Level Thirteen - Crafting Your First Adventure * Level Fourteen - GameMastering * Level Fifteen - Ending the Game * Level Sixteen - The Dreaded T.P.K. (Total Party Kill) * Level Seventeen - Remembering Dungeons & Dragons * Level Eighteen - OmnusI's GURPS * Level Nineteen - * Level Twenty - Disease in RPGs * Level Twenty-One - Hit Points * Level Twenty-Two - Muderhoboes The OmnusCritic Reviews series State of the Dungeon series Ask the Wizard series Character Witness series In the 'Character Witness' series, Rob picks an RPG, and goes through the character creation process for it. He notes things about the process that help the player learn things they need to know about the roleplaying system in question, as well as rough areas and places where potential house rules might spice up or assist in the process for a game the viewer might run with it. At the beginning of each episode, Rob dons the persona of an attorney, acting as if he is presenting a 'Character Witness' at a trial, hence the name of the series. (Clever, eh? See what he did there?) At the end of each episode, Rob does a post-mortem of his experience, going over things he learned about the game through its character creation. The series began on September 6, 2018. Episode 1: Twilight 2000 (First Edition from 1984) Episode 2: Twilight 2000 (Second Edition from 1990) Massive Darkness series Card/Board series RPG a DAY series RPG a DAY is a Facebook group that does a yearly tabletop roleplaying game related question & answer series every day in August for the entire month. The questions are released as an infographic at the beginning of the month and participants are encouraged to answer as many of them as possible. The answers mainly consist of personal stories, experiences, and opinions of the participants in answer to each of the questions posed. Rob has been participating in RPGaDAY since 2016. What follows are the questions for each year he's participated (they are different every year) and brief summaries of his answers. RPG a DAY 2018 The 2018 RPG a DAY follows a slightly different format than the previous two years. Each week centers around a theme containing questions or requests that all begin with the exact same word (roughly). Week One: WHAT.. Day 1 - ...do you love about RPGs? Day 2 - ...do you look for in an RPG? Day 3 - ...gives a game 'staying power'? Day 4 - Most Memorable NPC? Day 5 - Favorite Recurring NPC? Week Two: HOW... Day 6 - ...can players make a world seem real? Day 7 - ...can a GM make the stakes important? Day 8 - ...can we get more people playing? Day 9 - ...has a game surprised you? Day 10 - ...has gaming changed you? Day 11 - Wildest character name? Day 12 - Wildest character concept? Week Three: DESCRIBE... Day 13 - ...how your play has evolved. Day 14 - ...a failure that became amazing. Day 15 - ...a tricky RPG experience you enjoyed. Day 16 - ...your plans for your next game. Day 17 - ...the best compliment you've had while gaming. Day 18 - What art inspires your game? Day 19 - What music enhances your game? Week Four: WHICH... Day 20 - ...game mechanic inspires your play the most? Day 21 - ...dice mechanic appeals to you? Day 22 - ...non-dice system appeals to you? Day 23 - ...game do you hope to play again? Day 24 - ...RPG do you think deserves greater recognition? Day 25 - Name a game that had an impact on you in the last year. Day 26 - Your gaming ambition for the next year. Week Five: SHARE... Day 27 - ...a great stream / actual play. Day 28 - ...whose inspiring gaming excellence you're grateful for. Day 29 - ...a friendship you have because of RPGs. Day 30 - ...something you learned about playing your character. Day 31 - ...why you take part in RPG-A-DAY. RPG a DAY 2017 Day 1 - What published RPG do you wish you were playing right now? Day 2 - What is an RPG you would like to see published? Day 3 - How do you find out about RPGs? Day 4 - Which RPG have you played the most since August 2016? Day 5 - Which RPG cover best captures the spirit of the game? Day 6 - You can game every day for a week. Describe what you'd do! Day 7 - What was your most impactful RPG session? Day 8 - What is a good RPG to play for sessions of 2hrs or less? Day 9 - What is a good RPG to play for about 10 sessions? Day 10 - Where do you go for RPG reviews? Day 11 - Which 'dead game' would you like to see reborn? Day 12 - Which RPG has the most inspiring interior art? Day 13 - Describe a game experience that changed how you play. Day 14 - Which RPG do you prefer for open-ended campaign play? Day 15 - Which RPG do you enjoy adapting the most? Day 16 - Which RPG do you enjoy using as is? Day 17 - Which RPG have you owned the longest but not played? Day 18 - Which RPG have you played the most in your life? Day 19 - Which RPG features the best writing? Day 20 - What is the best source for out-of-print RPGs? Day 21 - Which RPG does the most with the least words? Day 22 - Which RPGs are the easiest for you to run? Day 23 - Which RPG has the most jaw-dropping layout? Day 24 - Share a PWYW publisher who should be charging more. Day 25 - What is the best way to thank your GM? Day 26 - Which RPG provides the most useful resources? Day 27 - What are your essential tools for good gaming? Day 28 - What film/series is the biggest source of quotes in your group? Day 29 - What has been the best-run RPG Kickstarter you have backed? Day 30 - What is an RPG genre-mashup you would like to see? Day 31 - What do you anticipate most for gaming in 2018? RPG a DAY 2016 Rob's RPGaDAY answers for 2016 are NOT on his YouTube channel. They are on his Facebook page all the way at the very bottom. Day 1 - Real dice, dice app, diceless, how do you prefer to 'roll'? Rob would say he is definitely pro-dice. He says "it is almost incomprehensible for me to take away dice from tabletop roleplaying games." He then talks about collecting dice, lifting up a small sack of dice, then a fishbowl full, and mentions he's seen people with aquariums full of dice and says that he hasn't gone that far...but not for lack of trying. He doesn't use dice apps. As he states, he has an 'old-timers' fear of electronics. He's also never been able to find an app that replicates the feeling of having dice in your hand or the sound of them rolling on the table. He has played 'Marvel Superheroes Saga' a game that uses its own cards for its conflict and action resolution mechanics. He thinks this is quite a good system, but considering the incremental character advancement of RPGs, he prefers games that use dice as he sees it as a better way to address the fine gradients in skill and stat growth. He will play games that are diceless, but mostly just for one-shots. Most of the games he plays use dice. Day 2 - Best game session since August 2015? After finishing up a Warhammer 40K split campaign, Rob's group started up new characters in an already running D&D 5th Edition world, adding two new players and their characters for this restart: a cleric and a ranger. As an aside, Rob's entry into Dungeons & Dragons so many years ago was as a cleric, relegated to being the party's healing battery. He wanted to make sure the new cleric of the group had a better experience. So all the characters that night met in a tavern. The established players played a monk, a pyromaniac wizard, and a sword and shield fighter with aspirations to be an arcane fighter. A half-elf clad all in black enters the tavern, gets into a fight with a merchant at the bar, and promptly kills him. What could go wrong? Fireballs and frazzled cat hilarity ensue. Day 3 - Character moment you are proudest of? The story begins 20 years ago in a galaxy far, far away. Rob was playing two characters in a large two group blended game of West End's Star Wars d6 (two groups, different parts of one big basement). In one group he played a super crazy Quixotic Jedi clad in a bathrobe and wielding a flashlight. Other characters among the two groups included a Brash Pilot, a Wookie, a pacifist Gamorean, a droid (who was scared of naked Jedi and Gamoreans), and a kleptomaniac Squib (a small blue creature). The groups were regaling each other of their adventures. The group with the Wookie had found themselves on a galactic zoo ship with many creatures including an infant Sarlac. The Wookie managed to kill it. Suffice it to say, Rob's crazy Jedi was not impressed. Our tale begins here... Day 4 - Most impressive thing another's character did? This is a story of a rather cerebral player who no longer plays with Rob unfortunately, and one of his characters. What can you expect from a player that is willing to have his bard dry hump a Balrog's face (causing it blindness no less) during combat? Read on. This same player in a different game, playing a little halfling fighter/rogue who is a member of a proud cadre of dwarves and halflings affectionately known as 'The Anklebiters' comes into the possession of a set of magical wooden dentures that allows him to chew through anything. He chews his way out of a prison cell. Takes him a while, but he does it. Later the group finds itself facing a Red Dragon. Try to guess what happens next. Day 5 - What story does your group tell about your character? Despite not playing in many games (Rob mostly acts a GM and DM) he has managed to accrue a small stack of characters he's run in a variety of games over the years. This is a story about a combination World of Darkness Vampire/Werewolf game using the same groups from the Star Wars game mentioned in Day 3, and in the same style (two groups, different parts of the basement, able to crossover). The Vampires were all Sabbat and the Werewolves, Rob's character excluded, were all Shadow Lords. He was a Bone Gnawer Theurge Lupus named Fangface (due to crooked teeth). Daddy had a hot night with one of the caged wolves apparently. He was laid back. Think the love child of Scooby Doo and Shaggy. Zoinks! This is in stark contrast to the rest of his Shadow Lord group who were back-stabbing, self-serving, power hungry sadists. Anyway, after inadvertently knocking up a prostitute his Garou group got for him to try and embarrass him, the act of which somehow managed to help prove his mangy manhood, he proceeded to try and create a bucket of never-ending gravy. He had somewhat of a Kentucky fried chicken addiction and loved the gravy since it tasted so much like meat and you didn't even have to chew it. After the dust settled on the conflict that ultimately wound up annihilating both the Sabbats and the Shadow Lords, poor Fangface was left the only one alive and still wishing he had his self-replenishing vat of gravy (he unfortunately flubbed the rite to create it). Day 6 - Most amazing thing a game group did for their community? Day 7 - What aspect of RPGs has had the biggest effect on you? Day 8 - Hardcover, softcover, digital? What is your preference? Day 9 - Beyond the game, what's involved in an ideal session? Day 10 - Largest in-game surprise you have experienced? Day 11 - Which gamer most affected the way you play? Day 12 - What game is your group most likely to play next? Why? Day 13 - What makes a successful campaign? Day 14 - Your dream team of people you used to game with? Day 15 - Your best source of inspiration for RPGs? Day 16 - Historical person you'd like in your group? What game? Day 17 - What fictional character would best fit in your group? Day 18 - What innovation could RPG groups benefit most from? Day 19 - Best way to learn a new game? Day 20 - Most challenging but rewarding system have you learned? Day 21 - Funniest misinterpretation of a rule in your group? Day 22 - Supposedly random game events that keep recurring? Day 23 - Share one of your best 'Worst Luck' stories. Day 24 - What is the game you are most likely to give to others? Day 25 - What makes for a good character? Day 26 - What hobbies go well with RPGs? Day 27 - Most unusual circumstance or location in which you've gamed. Day 28 - Thing you'd be most surprised a friend had not seen or read? Day 29 - You can game anywhere on Earth, where would you choose? Day 30 - Describe the ideal game room if the budget were unlimited. Day 31 - Best advice you were ever given for your game of choice? RPGs Rob Has Created Dicephile? Dice File? Family Rob lives in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. In some of his earlier videos he states that his wife sometimes games with him. I do not know if he is currently married, however. He has a 12 year old son (as of August 2018) named Alex who he is starting to introduce to roleplaying games. He also has at least one black female cat, whose name I do not know.